It’s no surprise. Colleges and universities view today’s breed of college parent with some disdain. They see us as interfering in our student’s lives and overly involved in the college admissions process. If you compare us to the parents of 20 years ago, you might draw the same conclusion. We’ve been given the following names: helicopter parents, snow plow parents, and bulldozer parents. These nicknames have emerged over the last few years viewing parents as “the enemy”.

But are these characterizations really accurate? One school administrator thinks otherwise. Beth Moriarty, Director of Residence Life and Housing at Bridgewater State University and adjunct faculty member in the Student Affairs Counseling Program believes that it is time to change our views on parental involvement. In a recent post, she prefaced her argument:

K-12 literature supports the premise that parents who are involved in their students’ education, have students who are more likely to succeed both academically and socially. Additional research states that parents who are involved have students who are less likely to participate in at-risk alcohol and drug behavior. Research on first-generation, low income, and minority students suggests that parental involvement can increase the likelihood of students in these groups persisting to graduation. With this being said, perhaps we should embrace parents as partners, rather than fearing them as the enemy.

It’s a fact that some parents do get overly involved in their student’s life. But saying that all parents are helicopter parents is wrong. Our roles as parents have changed and evolved over the years. Today’s parents are invested in their student’s educational future and success. With competition among students more prevalent than ever before, encouragement and support can often translate into over-involvement. How do we help university officials see that parenting can be viewed in a positive light? Should parents be embraced as partners and should the colleges help parents embrace that role?

Take a few minutes and read the complete content of Ms. Moriarity’s post and comment here if you agree or disagree. I would love to hear your thoughts.